


Winds of Change

by AitanaTheFangirl



Category: The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
Genre: Gen, Genderbending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-21
Updated: 2016-08-21
Packaged: 2018-08-10 06:28:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,529
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7833877
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AitanaTheFangirl/pseuds/AitanaTheFangirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lina's (Link) twelfth birthday doesn't quite go the way she planned...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Winds of Change

**Author's Note:**

> A friend of mine said I should post this. Hope you guys like it!! :D

    It was a warm night. Lina and her little brother, Alryn, had been allowed to sleep overnight on the Lookout, outside, overlooking the ocean.

    They had been awake for hours, chattering between themselves and the seagulls that flew nearby, long after the moon reached its peak.

    The result? Lina slept late into the morning, waking only when her brother called to her.

    “‘Hoy, Sissy?!” he called, coming up the ladder to the overlook where Lina still slept.

    “Sissy, it’s time to wake up!” he said cheerfully to her. “Today’s a big day!”

    Lina woke slowly. “Morning… Big day?” she asked groggily.

    Alryn laughed. “You’re still half asleep, are you?” he said. “How could you forget? It’s your birthday!”

_ My birthday!  _ That thought woke Lina up quickly. And this birthday was a little more important than the rest: It was her twelfth, and special things happened on a girl’s twelfth birthday. Everyone on Outset Island knew the importance.

    “Grandpa said he wanted to see you too, so you should go see him,” Alryn continued.

    Lina slid down the ladder, jumping off the dock and into the warm white sand, trying to get to her cabin on the beach as soon as possible, others wishing her a happy birthday as she passed.

    She got inside, the rich, warm smell of her favorite soup cooking on the fire filling the tiny house. “Grandpa?” Lina said. “Where are you?”

    Her grandpa, a tiny old man, rounded the corner as fast as he could. “Lina! Happy birthday, sweet girl!”

    Lina went forward to meet him, putting her arm around his shoulder and laughing. “Grandpa, you really should be careful… You’ll fall and hurt yourself.”

    “Well, I didn’t want to be late for the most important day of your young life!” Grandpa said, Lina helping him to a chair. Then she sat down as well.

    “Al said you wanted to see me?” Lina said.

    “Indeed,” Grandpa said. “It’s an old Outset tradition to tell our girls about a certain legend when they turn twelve, and it goes as follows.” 

    Then he began to tell a story in the storytelling voice that Lina loved. “Once there was a peaceful, prosperous kingdom. The people were blessed and happy. 

    “Soon, a shadow came from the west, filling the golden kingdom with despair. 

    “But when all was lost, a young girl in green came as if from nowhere. She wielded a mystical blade and a golden light that she used to banish the evil. And for a time, all was peaceful again.

    “Before too long, the shadow returned, stronger than before. The people prayed to their gods for the Hero to return.

    “But she didn’t come.

    “The kingdom resigned to its fate, water flooded the ancient realm, its tallest peaks forming the the islands you now know,” Grandpa stopped for a while, standing up and walking to a cabinet. “Now, on Outset, it’s become a tradition for our girls to wear green when they come of age to inspire them to find mystical blades to cast down evil.”

    Grandpa held out a green outfit to Lina. “Maybe this outfit will remind you of the Hero of Legend.”

    Lina looked through it, frowning. There was a 2 layered tunic with long sleeves, white tights, knee high leather boots, and a long green hat to match. “Uhh, Grandpa… isn’t it too hot outside for all this?”

    “Now, Lina…” Grandpa chided. “You only have to wear it for 1 day.”

 

    When Lina left the tiny house, she had swapped out her light, breathable blue crayfish shirt and shorts for the heavy tunic and her favorite leather sandals for the boots.

    Lina went back to Alryn, who stood on his lookout perch, feeding the seagulls.

    “Wow, Sissy!” he said. “You sure look great in your birthday outfit… but isn’t it a little too hot for all that?”

    “Yeah,” Lina said, leaving it at that.

    “Anyway, I have a present for you, too!” Alryn said, practically jumping up and down with excitement. “Close your eyes and hold out your hands!”

    Lina complied, a long, wide cylinder making its way into her hands.

    “Happy birthday, Sissy!!” Alryn squealed.

    It was Alryn’s telescope, painted red and capped on both ends with gold, as well as a gold tuning dial. It was decorated with a pair of tiny seagulls painted on the barrel. It was his most prized possession.

    “Wow, Al…” Lina said. “I know how much this means to you.”

    “But it’s only for today because it’s your birthday,” the tiny boy replied. “You can look through it right now, if you want.”

    She did, and could easily see the whole island. The Rito postwoman on the beach delivering the daily mail, swordswoman Orca’s house--

    Alryn suddenly gasped. “Lina!! The sky! Look up at the sky!!” he said, terrified. 

    Lina angled the telescope skyward, almost falling over backward with what she saw: a massive helmed bird, the spacious pirate ship not too far behind paling in comparison as far as size. In the bird’s talons, there was a tiny figure, a boy, his blond hair gold in the sunlight.

    A huge, black cannonball soared from the pirate ship, hitting the bird. It dropped its captive onto the fairy forest overlooking the island village.

    Lina lowered the telescope, mulling over what she had just seen. “Lina, did you see the boy?”

    “Yeah, I saw him…” Lina said quietly.

    “You need to go save him!! He could need help!” Alryn said.

    “No worries, buddy,” Lina said, putting a hand on Alryn’s shoulder. “I’ll find him.”

    Lina went back to the main island, going up a hill to the bridge that would lead to the fairy forest. Thick, young trees blocked her path.  _ Great. _ She turned around to go to the old swordswoman, Orca, who might be able to lend Lina a sword.

    After a few test drills with it, Orca let Lina take the sword out. “Don’t do anything too stupid with it!” she warned.

    With a sword in hand, Lina went to the fairy forest, having its name because of a fairy that supposedly lived there, who could make you very rich if you could somehow move the massive stone head over the hole. But Lina never could. She walked through the forest, looking for the boy she had seen through the telescope.

    She came across a large clearing, a single tree, and long grass. Hanging from the lowest branch by his vest, unconscious, was the boy she had seen. Judging by the way he was dressed, he was a pirate: a violet vest over his bare chest, with loose fitting white pants and sandals.

    But before Lina could do anything about it, 2 monsters dropped from the sky from huge birds, but not nearly as big as the one Lina had seen in the telescope. Lina defeated them both and the boy in the tree woke up with a shout of surprise. 

    He struggled to free himself, and the branch he hung from snapped, the boy falling to the ground. Lina went to his side. 

    “Are you okay? I saw you fall, and--” Lina started.

    He looked her over. “What’s with that getup?” he asked.

    “I…” Lina said, speechless.

    “Wait a minute…” the boy thought aloud. “Trees? Where am I?”

    “Well, you’re--” Lina began again.

    “Sir! Captain Teterran!” an older woman said from the side.

_ Captain?  _ Lina thought, looking from the boy, who couldn’t have been much older than Lina, to the woman, who was twice the boy’s height, in disbelief.

    “Gina! Where have you and the others been?” the boy, apparently Teterran, asked her.

    “That giant bird dropped you on the summit of a mountain!” Gina replied.

    “A summit?” Teterran said. “Well, that wasn’t nice of it…  _ Well?  _ What are you standing around for? Come on! It’s time we repay our debt to that bird in full.”

    “But sir… what about this girl?” Gina asked, gesturing to Lina. 

    “Just leave her!” Teterran replied. “We don’t have time to deal with her! Just  _ come on _ !”

    “Yes, sir!” said Gina, following Teterran back the way Lina came.

    Lina followed them to the bridge, spotting Alryn at the end. “‘Hoy, Sissy!” he said, waving and running down the bridge to meet her. 

    After that, everything went way too fast.

    Before Lina could do anything, the giant bird came back from out of nowhere, swooping in with Alryn in its talons and breaking the bridge before Lina knew what was going on. “Sissy!!” Alryn cried, terror in his voice.

    “ _ Al!! _ ” Lina cried, her voice catching in her throat, the cry sounding strangled. She drew her sword and tried to run after him, Teterran and Gina holding her back, tears running down her face.

    “Let me  _ go _ !” Lina screamed between sobs. “You don’t understand!! My baby brother…!”

    “Stupid girl!” Teterran said. “There’s nothing for about 50 feet beneath us, and then there’s water. You’d squish on the surface. Get ahold of yourself. He’s gone. There’s nothing you can do.”

    Lina dropped her sword, slowly stopped struggling and fell to her knees, her head in her hands, sobbing as she heard the last of Alryn’s cries on the wind.

    “Alryn… Al…”


End file.
